The Long-Awaited Return of Lucas Boyé to Elche After Another Tumultuous Summer

The return of Lucas Boyé to Elche is one of the most intriguing and compelling aspects of the upcoming clash against Granada next Sunday (21:00 hours). The striker returns to Martínez Valero with his tail between his legs after a tumultuous summer in which many First Division teams showed interest in him, but no negotiations came to fruition. As a result, the Argentine continues in the Second Division, hindering his progress and his desire to break into the elite.

UD Las Palmas, Rayo Vallecano, and Getafe are among the clubs that initiated negotiations with Granada this past summer, but all were unsuccessful. Elche, which owns 30% of Boyé's economic rights, was merely a spectator of the market fluctuations, and ultimately, the Santa Fe forward will have to fight it out in the second tier.

Years ago, Elche demanded 20 million euros for Boyé and ended up betting on the continuity of the striker in a deal that turned out to be a failure because the franjiverde team was relegated in a dreadful year, devaluing all its players, including the Santa Fe native.

Boyé's good performances with Elche earned him a call-up to the Argentine national team, and in the three seasons he wore the franjiverde jersey, he averaged seven goals. Last season he achieved his goal of continuing to play in the First Division but also faced relegation with Granada and scored six goals.

Sunday's match is a crucial test and a very important maturity test for Eder Sarabia's team, which occupies relegation spots after collecting only three points from twelve available. The 3-0 defeat in Zaragoza will have consequences, with the first being Miguel San Román starting over Argentine Matías Dituro, who continues to penalize his team with major errors. For its part, Granada also arrives under significant pressure for this match as it has only one point more than Elche and is a team that must fight for direct promotion.

On another note, Elche Femenino has been eliminated from the Copa de SM la Reina. The team led by Javier Aguado was cruelly defeated by Alhama CF ElPozo 1-3 in a match with a misleading scoreline as the franjiverdes had clear chances even to win.